Smith v. Contra Costa County Sheriff

Background

Clarence Edward Smith, who was in custody at the West County Detention Facility, filed a civil-rights action under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 alleging that jail officials violated his constitutional rights. Smith proceeded without a lawyer and had been allowed to proceed without paying the filing fee.

The court first reviewed and dismissed Smith’s complaint on October 15, 2021, while allowing him to amend it. Smith then filed an amended complaint. On April 11, 2022, the court dismissed that amended complaint while again allowing amendment. The court gave Smith 28 days to file a second amended complaint correcting the deficiencies identified in that order and warned that failure to do so would result in dismissal without prejudice.

Ruling

The 28-day deadline passed, and Smith neither filed a second amended complaint nor communicated with the court. Applying the factors identified in Ferdik v. Bonzelet, the court found that dismissal was warranted under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 41(b), which permits dismissal when a plaintiff fails to comply with a court order or otherwise fails to prosecute the case.

The court ordered that the amended complaint be dismissed without prejudice. It also certified under 28 U.S.C. § 1915(a)(3) that any appeal seeking permission to proceed without paying the filing fee would not be taken in good faith. The clerk was ordered to close the file. The opinion’s footnote states that Smith may file a new civil-rights action if he is prepared to pursue his claims and discusses the applicable limitations period.